The long road for getting Coyote vs Acme to the big screen took a big step forward on Saturday, July 26th as the highly anticipated comedy kicked off San Diego Comic-Con as the first panel in Hall H. Originally produced by Warner Bros. and shot in 2020, the film has languished on the shelf for years, and at one point appeared to be headed toward oblivion as Warner Bros. Discovery planned to not release it and use the costs as a tax write off (like the scrapped DCEU Batgirl movie). After fan outcry however, the film is finally getting ready to see the light of day and today’s Comic-Con panel was the first time that footage from the movie has been revealed to the public, along with its global release date.
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The panel began with a sequence were Wile E. Coyote is sitting in his workshop, staring at the blueprints for all of his Acme gadgets while Johnny Cash’s cover of “Hurt” plays. A montage begins of his many, many failed attempts to capture the Road Runner and all the harm he’s endured from Acme’s products. The song reaches a fever pitch, cutting back and forth between classic footage of Wile E. and the modern version of him in the movie, when a commercial on a nearby television interrupts the song and his thoughts. On the screen we see Will Forte’s Kevin Avery, a lawyer of the firm Avery, Jones, and Maltese, who starts his ad by asking a few questions:
“Have you ever pulled the ripcord on your parachute but only silverware came out? Have you ever set up dynamite to blow up your nemesis, but when you pressed the detonator, the detonator exploded? It’s not your fault. There’s someone else to blame.”
As that final sentence rings through Wile E. Coyote’s ears, the lights begin to come on in his workshop, showing off the sheer amount of Acme crates surrounding him.
After this brief clip, a full six minute sequence from Coyote vs Acme was revealed. In the scene, the case is about to begin and Will Forte’s character is petrified. The director revealed to us that Avery is more of a settlement style lawyer, and not one that goes to trial, so he hasn’t been inside a courtroom in years. Wile E. Coyote is seated next to him but across from them, the council for Acme, is John Cena as Buddy Crane.
As the trial begins, the judge (played by Luis Guzman) enters the court room. Since this trial features a cartoon in addition to humans, he picks up a big cartoon mallet to start the proceedings, it squeaks as he slams it down. Cena’s Buddy Crane delivers his opening remarks, noting that they live in a great country where people have “The freedom to chase after a bird that’s much faster than them” and anyone is allowed to buy Acme products to hunt down that bird, what they’re not allowed to be is reckless (as he talks, Wile E. holds up an “Acme Sucks” sign). He wraps it up by saying God Bless America, and God Bless the troops. As he sits back down, Forte’s Avery notes “That was really good,” only to realize that the court stenographer is writing down everything he says and entering it into the record.
Forte’s opening arguments begin poorly. “So what is the defense here to say?” he asks the jury (composed of both humans and cartoons, including deep cut character Miss Prissy). As he stammers through his words and stumbles about, Wile E. reaches into a box and pulls out a rocket skate for Avery to enter into the record. Avery picks it up and notes that his client wants to show off the skate with its faulty on switch. After Avery presses it, it flies around the room, knocking things and people over, including, of course, Wile E. A series of image from the court sketch artist shows the aftermath, with Guzman’s judge robes on fire and Cena’s Crane attempting to put it out, it’s hilarious.
That night, Avery is seated on his hotel bed when he gets a mysterious phone call. Fans will immediately recognize the voice as none other than Bugs Bunny, but Avery isn’t familiar so the mysterious new source flies over his head. The voice offers help with the case though, telling him to meet up with someone to blow the whole case wide open, he just needs to meet them at 666 Scary Road Drive.
Finally, the panel concluded with the full trailer, which features A LOT of explosions, both cartoon and practical, set to the William Tell overture. Wile E. Coyote holds cartoon dynamite that explodes in his face, naturally, while another scene shows someone ripping up the asphalt of the street like a carpet and sending a real 18 wheeler truck flying. There are plenty of cameos and appearances in the trailer too including the Tasmanian Devil, cartoon Peter Laurie, Granny, the silhouette of Bugs Bunny in a trench coat and hat, plus Tweety Bird (being squeezed inside John Cena’s massive hand) and “That’s all folks” written in dust on the back of a car.
The good news is that Coyote vs Acme is finally coming out, the bad news is that it’s over a year away with the confirmed release date now August 26, 2026. Though with 397 days between then and now, the time for all this footage to make its way out, and for fans to see what Warner Bros. was trying to hide forever, is quickly approaching.
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Image Courtesy of TOHO
